Mengo set to lose out as Kayunga town authorities clash over land 

A plan by Kayunga Town authorities to pay Shs450 million to a landlord for the land on which the town council offices are located has pitted local leaders against Buganda Kingdom officials in Kayunga District with the latter set to lose a prime piece of land.

According to Ms Faridah Kulabako, the Kayunga Town Clerk, the money will be paid to the family of late Malachi Kalya so that they get a title for the land on which the urban council has been sitting for over 45 years.

Buganda Kingdom and the family of late Kalya, who was a Mengo chief in Bugerere County, have for a long time been fighting over the prime piece of land located adjacent to Kayunga Regional Referral Hospital.

Buganda Kingdom which owns buildings on the disputed land, constructed in 1930s to house the Mumyuka sub-county headquarters claims ownership of the same land with Ms James Ssempigga, the Bugerere County chief arguing that they have a land title for it.
 
But according to the technical land survey report released by Kayunga District surveyor, the land belongs to the late Kalya family.
"We have contacted the late Kalya's family which has agreed a payment of Shs450 million for their land. We are going to make the payment basing on the District surveyors’ report that this land belongs to Late Kalya and not Buganda Kingdom as earlier thought," Ms Kulabako said. 
She explained that the Solicitor General is handling the matter and the payment would be made after his advice.

"If we don't pay late Kalya for this land, late Kalya's family can sell it off and tell us to remove our structures," the Town Clerk said.
But Mr James Ssempigga, the Kabaka’s chief in charge of Bugerere County said anyone who buys Buganda Kingdom land from unscrupulous people will have bought hot air, insisting that the land belongs to the Kabaka.

But Ms Kulabako said they would go ahead to pay Kalya's family for the land because they (town council) have never been notified of any court case by Buganda Kingdom against the family.

"We have recovered the Mumyuka sub-county headquarters which had been grabbed by late Kalya's family and now our next move would be to get back that town council land," Ms Margaret Ssempala, the Mumyuka sub-county chief said.

Late Kalya's family early this year erected a sign post on the contested Mumyuka sub-county indicating that no one should trespass on it but Buganda Kingdom leaders removed them and repossessed the land and planted grass in the compound.

Mr Abdul Batambuze, the Kayunga chief administrative officer said ownership contestation of this piece of land had been resolved after the district surveyor surveyed and opened its boundaries.